Power and Wealth

Morning.

Front square of the park.

People are densely packed, surrounding the area.

Amid the astonished gazes of all city leaders and attending investment personnel, Dong Xuebing, wearing an embarrassed expression, was unexpectedly embraced by Zhang Longjuan, who walked towards him. His right hand, extended for a handshake, paused midway, almost poking into Zhang Longjuan's abdomen. He had to navigate around her voluptuous figure in a blue casual waistcoat. Helplessly, Dong Xuebing had to reciprocate the hug, coughing awkwardly and placing his hand on Zhang Longjuan's back. In doing so, his palm accidentally touched the clasp of her bra beneath the suit, feeling the fine and narrow texture. It seemed like the scent of lingerie, adding to Dong Xuebing's embarrassment.

This Zhang Longjuan, silently bringing so many people along, now suddenly hugged him. She always launched sudden attacks, leaving Dong Xuebing caught off guard.

"Ha, missed me?"

"Sister Zhang, cough, there are still people around."

"What's there to worry about? Hugging is considered polite in Florida."

"Why didn't you give me a heads-up before coming over?"

"Didn't I call you brat?"

"But you didn't mention you'd bring so many people. I wasn't prepared."

"Hehe, didn't I say I wanted to surprise you? Surprise?"

"How could I not be surprised? If I had known you were bringing so many foreign investors, I'd probably be so happy these days that I wouldn't sleep. I've been looking forward to it."

"Haha, as long as you're happy."

"Thanks, Sister Zhang. You've helped me this time."

"It's always you helping me. I had a rare chance to help you this time, so no need for thanks. We don't need to be so polite."

"Alright, then, I won't be polite. Hehe."

"Ha, it's appropriate to be a bit polite. After you made the call, I started contacting people everywhere. There should be some reward for that, right?"

"Uh, what reward?"

"Let's talk about it later. First, handle the situation here."

"Alright. It's not convenient to talk here. Cough, stop hugging."

Though Zhang Longjuan's sudden attack was unexpected, Dong Xuebing was secretly delighted. Seeing so many CEOs and shareholders of large corporations, he felt his eyes shining. However, chatting with Zhang Longjuan, he forgot about the time. After coming to his senses, he realized they had been hugging for half a minute, all in full view of everyone. Dong Xuebing, whose face had never been thick-skinned, now felt slightly embarrassed.

Zhang Longjuan, however, didn't think much of it. Smiling broadly, she let him go. "County Mayor Dong, haha. Let me introduce you to these people."

"Sure." Dong Xuebing followed her.

Zhang Longjuan pointed to a person. "This is Anna, my younger sister. Their family business has a lot of business dealings with my company. I'm also an old friend of her father."

Dong Xuebing looked at her. Although this foreign girl was the youngest, she was still significantly older than Dong Xuebing. So, he immediately shook hands with her. "Hello, nice to meet you." This sentence was spoken in English.

The foreign girl also smiled and shook hands with him, saying a few sentences. However, Dong Xuebing didn't understand.

Zhang Longjuan continued, "This is Lena, my business partner. He was also my first friend when I got to Florida. A good person, just with a heavy accent. Sometimes I can't understand what he's saying."

Dong Xuebing and Lena also shook hands.

Then Lena, this towering man at 1.9 meters, smiled and hugged Dong Xuebing.

In the eyes of others, the hug seemed to carry the same meaning as when Ms. Zhang hugged County Mayor Dong earlier. The surrounding people didn't seem to find it inappropriate, considering Zhang Longjuan was an investor from abroad and had lived there for many years. Their customs and habits were likely different from those in China. Although it might seem odd in the domestic context, hugging was a common and courteous gesture in their culture, similar to a handshake. Moreover, it was evident that Zhang Longjuan and Zhen Shui’s Mayor had known each other for a long time and appeared very familiar. The embrace and greetings between two old friends seemed perfectly normal to everyone else. While Dong Xuebing and Zhang Longjuan conversed in low tones, others couldn't hear what they were saying, only seeing them chatting and laughing, assuming it was a friendly exchange.

So, no one paid much attention to it.

Compared to the hug, everyone was more concerned about the investment.

When people saw Zhang Longjuan and Dong Xuebing knew each other, discussions broke out among the crowd.

"So, they were invited by Zhen Shui County."

"Why didn't we get any information beforehand?"

"Zhen Shui County has been quite secretive. I was wondering why they were so relaxed."

"But wait, judging by the expression of their Mayor, it seems like he was also unaware."

"I saw that too. He looked surprised. Probably didn't expect it himself."

"What's going on? How could they bring so many foreign investors without prior notice, and all of them are from large corporations with investments in the billions or tens of billions?"

"This is a huge opportunity."

"Do we still have a chance?"

"Well, looking at the Mayor's expression, it doesn't seem like he knew in advance."

"I saw it too. Quite surprised. I guess he didn't expect this."

"What a situation. They didn't even know but still managed to attract so many foreign investors, and all these are large conglomerates."

"The pie is getting bigger."

"Do we still have a chance?"

"Who knows? Ms. Zhang and Zhen Shui County might not have such a good relationship as it seems on the surface. The key is whether the project can attract them."

"Right. No matter how good their relationship is, business is business."

"Yes, that place Zhen Shui County is, they can't retain such a big piece of the pie."

Zhen Shui County had long annoyed many people, marginalized by the city and other districts' investment bureaus. Seeing that so many foreign investors were heading there, envy arose among many. However, even though Zhen Shui County gained the advantage, many believed they couldn't keep these foreign investors. When the time came, Zhang Longjuan and the other investors would likely be redirected elsewhere. Essentially, Zhen Shui County was preparing the wedding dress for others. Thinking about this, the envy in people's hearts diminished. Many started to anticipate and plan their bidding strategies.

The arrival of Zhang Longjuan's team changed many things.

The unexpected hug between Zhang Longjuan and Dong Xuebing also altered many things.

At least, even if Deputy City Mayor Hua and other city officials didn't know what to think about it, their attitude towards County Mayor Dong became less rigid after giving each other astonished glances.

After the introductions were done, Dong Xuebing returned.

"Mayor Dong," Hua Li called out to him.

Dong Xuebing glanced at him. "Mayor Hua."ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ Novᴇ(l)ꜰɪre .ɴᴇt

Hua Li's tone softened. "For such a big matter, why wasn't it reported earlier?"

Dong Xuebing also noticed the subtle change in Hua Li's attitude. However, he knew this change was not due to his achievements but mainly because Zhang Longjuan and many investors were present. It would be foolish if they displayed displeasure towards Dong Xuebing in front of them. So, Dong Xuebing replied, "I just found out. I originally invited Ms. Zhang, but it was only her. I don't know the others. However, she was busy with business, and the time wasn't certain. I thought about reporting to the city but considering her schedule; I didn't. I had no idea there would be so many people coming. I would have gone to the airport to welcome them if I had known. How could I not inform the city and be busy with other things at the investment promotion venue?"

Hua Li nodded slightly. "I understand. I guessed you were unaware. It's alright. Now that they're here, that's good. The invitation from Zhen Shui County carries a lot of weight. We are honored to have Chairman Zhang and many well-known international corporate shareholders and investors."

Lu Weiguo seemed to want to affirm Zhen Shui County's achievements, but perhaps due to thin skin, he hesitated and refrained from saying anything.

Other investment promotion personnel looked at Dong Xuebing with complex expressions.

The city's investment promotion official who had argued with them earlier had a disgruntled expression. Nobody had expected Zhen Shui County to experience such a turnaround and encounter such tremendous luck.

However, Dong Xuebing was a bit disdainful of the praise and approval from Hua Li and the others. He didn't like Hua Li and Lu Weiguo at all. When Zhang Longjuan and the delegation hadn't arrived, you were tossing us around with the worst booth and not giving us good rooms. You insisted on revoking our booth qualification and never showed us any goodwill. Now that you see we invited Zhang Longjuan, and I know her, your attitude suddenly changed.

What a joke.

Where were you when we needed you?

Dong Xuebing always had a petty mentality towards people like them.

Lu Weiguo looked at him and finally spoke, "County Mayor Dong, you invited Ms. Zhang. Just now, you must have heard it. The delegates want to go down for site visits by themselves, without anyone accompanying them. This lacks specificity, and there won't be anyone to introduce the projects. It's not feasible. Can you talk to Ms. Zhang and suggest that our city's investment promotion personnel accompany them? It would also facilitate their research."

Now that Zhang Longjuan had arrived, bringing along a large group of people, Dong Xuebing gained confidence. He felt disappointed with the city officials but wasn't bothered by them anymore. He even disregarded the possibility of the booth being revoked. He grumbled, "They will not listen to me."

Hua Li said, "With your good relationship with Ms. Zhang, your suggestions will surely be considered. We must provide better services and suitable projects for the foreign investors."

Dong Xuebing scoffed, "I haven't known Ms. Zhang for long. It took a lot of effort to bring her here. If I ask for too much, it might annoy her. Let's listen to the investors' opinions."

Seeing Dong Xuebing unresponsive, Hua Li's expression soured.

Lu Weiguo was even more dissatisfied. How do you know she won't agree if you don't say anything?

Dong Xuebing, of course, ignored them. Let your people go with them for site visits. What nonsense are you thinking?